XSeries-forum

Hi folks, I know this has been done to death and the info I need is probably in here somewhere but I have been staring at my computer for hours and am going cross eyed!
I am looking to get a set of winter wheels and tyres for my 2004 3.0Dsport and was wondering...

I have found a used set of wheels which can be seen in the link below, third from top style 58.

http://www.kalach.easynet.be/e53_wh.htm

I have also seen some cheap tyres on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-x-255-40R18-95V ... 255f318f96

I notice the aspect ratio is different, 40 for the tyres but 48 recommended for the wheels. Will this be a problem or just mean the tyres will be lower profile than recommended?
Also will there be issues with the offset? I am pretty sure I have style 132 on the first link (not at home the now so cant check) and I see there is 2 different offsets for this style (ET48 and ET45) but all 4 of the wheels I am looking at are ET48.
Will they fit??

Thanks for any help you can offer, I have literally been on the net for hours looking for wheels and tyres and am going a bit mad!

Weight rating is too low - should be 107V or 111V

Profile change could cause issues with your speedo and may also affect the 4WD system as the rolling diameter is different. For example a 255/50 R19 has the same rolling diameter as a 285/45 R19. A 285/40 R19 has a smaller rolling diameter. I have seen comments before about changing just one tyre on a 4WD vehicle can lead to additional stresses on the transmission system and shatter it. The advice has always been to replace in pairs - same axle - or all 4 at once. I do not know how serious this is for an X5 and how tolerant of different rolling diameters on the same vehicle the BMW transmission is. It can obviosly cope with the differences in tread depth, but an actual tyre size difference may be an issue.

I'm not an expert but did pick a few things up from buying a set of winter tyres and rims last year. My comments -

1. The rims are 18 inch (your current are 19). Most people recommend going 17 for winter tyres and they are generally cheaper. With patience a set of 17s can be picked up on ebay for under £100. However , if you can get a good deal on 18s, there is no reason why not. I've gone with the BMW recommended 18s (style 99) for my 4.8iS (needed to clear front brakes )and they are great.

2. I think that the different offset is not an issue - it is the relationship of the tyre to the wheel mounting. These are X5 wheels. However, the different ratio (40) could result in problems - the rolling circumference will be smaller than the 55 ratio tyres and I simply wouldn't mess with it. Frankly the tyres here are not that much of a bargain to risk it and only two of them. I think you would be far better off getting a full set of winter tyres from one of the suppliers recommended on the forum - camskill and tyreman. I got 4 Vredestein Wintracs for just over £400 last year and they are, in my view, excellent.

The issue is that with current weather, stock may be low but I would hunt down a set to match the rims and others here will have favoured tyre suppliers.
Good luck.

Cheers for the advice,
didnt quite make it clear in the origonal post that I would be buying 4 of those tyres so they would be all the same on the car but if the weight rating is too low its no use anyway.

Cheers!